The Ravenscar Series

The Ravenscar Trilogy is a trio of modern novels, told in the modern vernacular, and set in the early part of the 20th Century through the early part of the 21st.

In The Ravenscar Dynasty, I have, to a certain extent, based my protagonist Edward Deravenel on the English medieval king, Edward IV.

Born Edward Plantagenet, the Earl of March, he was the eldest son of the mighty Duke of York and his Duchess. Edward’s father was a prince of the blood and a royal duke, head of the royal house of York, rightful heir to the throne of England. When Edward’s father was killed in the Battle of Sandal Castle in Yorkshire in 1640, during the Wars of the Roses, Edward assumed his father’s heredity title and became Duke of York. He continued his father’s heredity title and became Duke of York. He continued his father’s fight to win back the throne from his cousin, Henry VI, Duke of Lancaster, the Earl of Warwick, later known as the Kingmaker.

The throne of England has been usurped by the House of Lancaster from the House of York some sixty years earlier, and it was in 1461 that Edward Plantagenet took that throne back when he defeated Henry VI and became king that same year.

Aside from “borrowing” the exceptional good looks of Edward Plantagenet, and his height of six feet four, unusual for those times, I have used some aspects of his character and personality in the depiction of Edward Deravenel. Significant events in the life of the medieval king are used in a modern form as the basis, in part, of Edward Deravenel’s story.

In Heirs of Ravenscar, Edward Deravenel, having survived harrowing years of betrayal, threats from ruthless enemies, countless lovers, and a war that ravaged his country, is finally king of his company.

It’s 1918, an influenza pandemic is sweeping the country, and Edward has a family and a business to protect. He must thread his way between his loyal brother, Richard, and his treacherous middle brother, George, an alcoholic bent on self-destruction… but not before he tries to ruin Edward and his good name. Meanwhile, the wrath of his ever-jealous wife, Elizabeth, is reaching a boiling point as suspicions about Edward’s relationships with other women arise.

Politics of inheritance are intense, and different family factions vie for honor over the years. An heir is needed to keep the Deravenel name alive, but tragedy and death remain obstacles at every turn. The choices include a loyal caretaker, a jealous rumormonger, a charming young woman, a sickly boy, and the scion of the family Edward ousted from power years before.

In Being Elizabeth, twenty-five year-old Elizabeth Deravenel (based loosely on Elizabeth I) finds herself in a position few women her age could image: the head of Deravenels, a business empire that spans the globe.

It’s a company whose reach is wide and whose secrets are deep. Deravenels has roots that go far back in her family’s history, and she knows the price that many had to pay to see it reach the success it is today. And Elizabeth is the youngest executive in the company she now leads.

Surrounded by rumors and disloyalty, she knows that there are many people who would give anything to take down the company – and her with it. With her enemies circling, she finds herself at a crossroad of choices involving her mind, her heart, and her destiny. As scandal surrounds the one man she’s ever loved, Elizabeth discovers how the next move she makes could have deadly and final consequences.

The Complete Ravenscar Trilogy: The Ravenscar Dynasty, Heirs of Ravenscar, Being Elizabeth

Packaged together for the first time, THE RAVENSCAR TRILOGY is one of Barbara Taylor Bradford’s best-loved series.

Ravenscar: A house, a legacy and a dynasty…

THE RAVENSCAR DYNASTY follows the fortunes of the Edward Deravenel and his family, as passions and power, ambition and treachery, love and loss combine in an epic tale of an extraordinary dynasty.

In HEIRS OF RAVENSCAR, the First World War has drawn to a close, and troubles are looming for the Deravenel family. Blackmail, betrayal and jealously have caused problems from within and is it up to Edward’s daughter, Bess, to secure the Ravenscar inheritance – whatever it takes…

In the last part of the trilogy, BEING ELIZABETH, the Deravenel fortune has come to rest on the shoulders of Elizabeth Deravenel Turner after years of familial strife. As the twentieth century draws to a close, Elizabeth must fight for her birthright and inheritance in a family still divided by conflicting loyalties and politics.

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